Pagcor generates P107B in revenue

MANILA, Philippines—After barely three years since the new leadership took office in 2010, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor)  has generated over P107 billion  in gross  revenue,   it said on   Wednesday.

“We are happy to note that in less than three years of our administration, Pagcor has already generated over P107 billion in gross revenues from July 2010 to April 2013,” Pagcor chairman and chief executive officer Cristino Naguiat Jr. said in a statement.

“Of this amount, at least P54 billion was remitted as our contributions to nation-building,” Naguiat said.

The state-owned gaming firm turned over a total of over P1.4 billion in cash dividends to the national coffers during the “GOCC Dividends Day” held at the Rizal Hall of Malacañang Palace last Monday.

The amount, plus the P5.7 billion making up the national government’s 50 percent share from Pagcor’s total income from December 2012 to April 2013, brought the agency’s total remittances to the National Treasury to over P7 billion to date.

Pagcor was  just among the 38 government-owned and  controlled corporations (GOCCs), which remitted cash dividends and other forms of contributions to the government amounting to close to P28 billion.

President Benigno Aquino III praised Pagcor’s contribution to nation building during his speech when he personally  received the turnover of the contributions from Naguiat and heads of the other GOCCs.

Naguiat said  Pagcor’s management has been doing its best to surpass the agency’s annual income targets and accomplishments as part of its mandate to help raise much-needed revenues for the government.

Under his leadership, Naguiat said Pagcor was able to fund high-impact projects geared towards the improvement of the welfare of the Filipino youth.

The agency, he said, has so far allocated P3-billion for building thousands of classrooms in public schools nationwide. It has also provided a P100 million funding for the “Pnoy Bayanihan” project which produces armchairs out of confiscated logs and donated to public schools.

Another big ticket  of  the so-called “corporate  social responsibility” project of the agency, Pagcor said,  is the P20 million Kasibulan grassroots football program which hones the skills of thousands of young Pinoy football enthusiasts nationwide.